American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall on March 9 warned in a letter to President Trump that action must be taken against the fertilizer shock, which “really is a national security issue. Our farmers across the country are heading into spring planting, and they’re facing one of the toughest economic environments that we’ve seen in decades.” The price of urea fertilizer on world markets, for example, has risen 25% in 10 days.
Duvall did not take on the question of the war against Iran directly, instead referring to the present situation as showing “heightened geopolitical uncertainty.”
The two-page Farm Bureau letter includes seven action points with specifics on what should be done, from a waiver of the Jones Act, which would allow non-U.S. ships to be used for fertilizer, to using, “the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation to address insurance or financing barriers for vessels transporting fertilizer cargo.”
The Farm Bureau is traditionally a Republican base. The Trump Administration has been trying to claim it is doing something about the hyperinflation of fertilizer and other farm input costs, by having the Department of Justice investigate price collusion by the four transnational companies dominating the fertilizer sector. While the fertilizer and other agro-cartels could and should have been broken up decades ago, having another “investigation” is like studying whether hens or roosters lay the eggs.
